1. Technical Field
The present invention generally relates to motor vehicles. More particularly, the present invention relates to a double door construction for a pick-up truck. While not limited thereto, the present invention specifically relates to a double door arrangement for a pick-up truck in which a trailing horizontal edge of a rear door is not visible from a side view of the pick-up truck.
2. Discussion
In a conventional manner, pick-up truck cabs are constructed to include a single door which is pivotally mounted on each side of the vehicle body to permit ingress and egress to seating positions for the driver and passengers of the vehicle. Such doors are hinged adjacent their leading vertical edges. In certain applications, the construction of the pick-up truck cab is modified by extending its length. Such extended cab configurations typically provide a rear seating area for additional vehicle passengers, cargo or both. In the described conventional arrangement including a single door mounted on each side of the vehicle body, ingress and egress to the rear seat is often difficult.
To a more limited extent, it is also known in extended cab configurations to provide a pair of doors on each side of a pick-up truck. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,836 to Grinn is illustrative of such a use of a double side door construction. The rear door is pivotally mounted to a rear pillar or B-pillar of the pick-up truck. When the rear door is closed, its trailing vertical edge is flush with a lateral side of the cab body.
While known door constructions for motor vehicles, including but not limited to the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,836, have proven to be commercially acceptable for specific applications, they are all associated with certain drawbacks. For example, when the door construction of the type shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,836 is incorporated into a vehicle, the trailing vertical edge of the rear door is positioned forward of the rear edge of the cab body, as shown most clearly in FIG. 3 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,836. This is unattractive, as the operating clearance between the door and the body of the vehicle is clearly visible from a side view, thereby detracting from the overall styling of the vehicle.